The visual inspection of persons, animals, machinery, and equipment and the general surveillance of areas and facilities is sometimes supplemented by the use of cameras that detect infrared spectra and provide a visible image of the field of view. Some of these cameras provide more detailed thermal information and are called thermographic imaging systems. Many of these cameras are hand-held, and incorporate microprocessors with on-board digital memory to capture and record images. Often the camera has an interface to a laptop computer which provides additional data management and storage capability. The visible image provided by thermographic imaging systems depicts relative temperatures of observed objects, typically with red tones being used to portray higher temperatures and blue tones used to portray lower temperatures. Thus when viewing machinery and equipment the image provides information about the operating condition of the machinery and equipment. However, in order to acquire data that are meaningful for inspection and maintenance of machinery and equipment it is important that the camera be properly adjusted and that appropriate images be observed and recorded by the operator. Improper camera settings, failure to check important machinery features, and mistakes in recording inspection results occur frequently enough to cause significant problems in the implementation of current technology. Thus, there is a need for better operator training, improved inspection processes, and more effective data recording techniques when deploying these cameras for commercial inspection applications.